"We can go and win another national championship," Richard said, "if we play the way we played today."

UF's sashay through the SEC and toward the NCAA Tournament continued with a 91-66 thumping of overwhelmed Auburn in front of a rare sellout crowd at Beard-Eaves Memorial Coliseum.

The No. 1 Gators now sit 6-0 in the league, and though the gristle of the schedule lies ahead, thoughts of sweeping through the SEC -- and beyond -- grow harder to suppress.

"When we're clicking, when we're all doing the right thing, when we're all playing defense on edge, with that passion and that intensity level," guard Taurean Green said, "we know we're tough to beat."

Repeating as national champs and winning one of the nation's toughest leagues are goals that remain a couple of months in the distance. But UF's win streak, now at 12 games, and its two-loss lead on the field in the conference, makes the Gators much more tangible than a couple of months back.

The past week provided a glimpse into what's to come in the final 10 conference games, including two each against Tennessee, Vanderbilt and Kentucky.

On some nights, Florida (19-2, 6-0) will struggle against a team playing better-than-usual basketball.

It happened Wednesday -- UF held off feisty Mississippi State 70-67 at Humphrey Coliseum -- and figures to pop up a few more times before March Madness.

Other nights, it won't matter much how the other team plays. That happened Saturday against the all-roar, no-bite Tigers (13-9, 3-4), and things weren't nearly as close.

A Lee Humphrey 3-pointer with 12 minutes, 40 seconds left in the first half, part of a 5-for-5 Florida start from that range, gave the Gators a 21-9 edge.

From there, UF's lead would never drop back below double digits. It hit 20 points on Green's 3-pointer with 14:49 left; likewise, the advantage wouldn't fall beyond that the rest of the game.

Four UF starters scored in double figures, led by Green, Humphrey and Al Horford with 17 points apiece.

Three other Gators finished with eight points apiece, including a flu-riddled Joakim Noah who sat out practice Thursday and Friday with the illness.

For the game, Florida shot 58 percent from the field, 64 percent from 3-point range and improved a recent sore spot by sinking 24 of 35 free throws.

"We made some 3-pointers early," Coach Billy Donovan said, "and we had a pretty well-balanced attack."

UF also held Auburn to 1-of-13 shooting from 3-point range, grabbed 10 more rebounds than the Tigers and balanced eight turnovers with 18 assists. And the scary thing?

The Gators, without a dissenter, say there's room to get better. That thought, for sure, makes those championship thoughts more frequent.

"We're still learning," Green said.

"We can improve on a lot of stuff. We can listen to our coaches and just keep getting better. We want to reach our peak."